Pete's Place

[foxbat]

Beautiful tanks, and kudos for striving to keep to historical accuracy. Up to the battle of El Alamein, Pz III lang were fairly rare beasts in the DAK.

[pmskaar]

Thank you very much, Foxbat!

It was not till Gazala in May 1943 that the Panzer III "Specials" started making their appearance. The "Specials" were the British term for the long barreled Panzer IIIs and IVs that started arriving in the late Spring of 1942. You are correct in that they were fairly rare until the very late Summer and Fall of 1942. I have concentrated on Mid to Late 1942 as the time frame for my North Africa project to cover the Gazala time frame as well as the Battles of El Alamein and in between. My German forces are a mix of short and long barreled Panzer IIIs and IVs as well as the Panzer IIs that made up the Panzer Divisions at this time.

[Hoth_902]

Pete,

As always, great stuff. Just curious, where do you get the small German cross for the back of your PZIIIs. I just finished up all the wheels on my PZIIIs and am going to start doing some camo. Once compete, its going to be detail work and then any decals.. Want to make sure I have all my decals for when I get to that point.

[pmskaar]

Thank you very much, Hoth!

The crosses on these Panzer IIIs and my other recent German vehicles are by Flight Deck Decals. I have also used I-94 decals for my German crosses as well. I don't have a particular preference of one company over the other in this case.

For the aerial recognition flags, I definitely prefer the ones from I-94 as the decals themselves are a thicker film and the clarity and brightness are really good. The ones from Flight Deck were thinner and not quite as crisp in the detail. I did try the Flight Deck Decals but not wholly satisfied with how things looked.

Here are a couple pictures of vehicles with the I-94 crosses and one with the recognition flags.


Sdkfz 222 and 223 armored cars with I-94 crosses.


Panzer IIIN with I-94 crosses.


Panzer IIIs with aerial recognition flags from I-94.


Panzer IVs with Flight Deck Decal crosses and tactical numbers.

[Hoth_902]

Pete,

Thanks for the information and for the additional pics. I have another question about Humbrol Paint storage. I went back to some of the cans that I have already used and when I reopend them, there was a layer of dried paint.. Do you have a tried and true method to keep the paint from drying out. I thought I had sealed the caps good but apparently not. I was thinking about putting them in a tupperware or a ziploc after I closed them.

[pmskaar]

Thanks very much, Hoth!

Humbrols. I have been using Humbrol Paints since the mid-1980s after I got back from Germany and at my next assignment in the Los Angeles area. That allowed me to visit Brookhurst Hobbies which was not too far away from me as well as a couple of other nice shops in the area including Valley Plaza Hobbies up in the San Fernando Valley.

I was just really getting into Micro Armor at that time and GHQ was in the midst of their production Renaissance. There were so many cool GHQ models coming out at that time with the emphasis in WWII. They had some new sculptors and the details were amazing and the models still hold up really well 40 years later .... but I digress.

I learned about Humbrol paints about that time, never having used them before. The color selection was excellent and the paints were easy to use and very durable once dry.

It was up until about 10 to 15 years ago or so that a tin of Humbrol would last me a very long time. As long as I sealed it properly with the cover, I did not have many problems with them drying out. Sometime in the 2000s, I am not sure when, Humbrol changed their formula. This may have been required due to health or environmental concerns but they did change.

The newer paints don't last as long in the container once opened and when I mix up some to spray out of my airbrush, I need to use it right away as it will often get "gunky" after just a couple days or a few days at most.

I have also noticed that the top layer of paint gets covered by a hard tacky film. The paint is not ruined but still usable. You can poke a hole in it with the non-bristle end of a brush or similar and there is still good paint underneath. Since I put the paint I am going to use on my palette rather than dipping into the tin each time, I have not had any major problems. You can stir the paint under the film a bit if you want to mix it better. My solution has been to take the paint on my brush and allowing some of the excess that is not pigment to bleed a bit onto a tissue so that I am putting mostly pigment on my palette and I stir it up then and add a bit of paint thinner to thin it.

I know this is a bit long winded but hopefully helpful.

A few other tips which you may already know.

1. Don't open a new tin of paint till you are ready to use it.

2. Try to cap the lid as tightly as you can. Sometimes paint will build up on the lid and prevents a tight seal.

These are still good paints but not quite as good in lasting as they were several years ago.

I had one of my old Humbrol paint mixes from years that was in one of the Testors jars for airbrushing. I was able to go back about 14 to 15 years later, mix it up a bit, and use it on a model I was painting for GHQ. I certainly am not able to do that any more.

[Hoth_902]

Pete,

No worries about the long winded explanation. Its really cool that you use to go to Brookhurst Hobbies. I lived in California for all of 10 months. While I was there, I had gone to Brookhurst hobbys more than once. Then, about 10 years ago, I would order things from them.. Mostly 1/600 scale aircraft from Tumbling dice. Its truly a small world.

Ugh.. on the Humbrol stuff. I actually opened several containers of stuff at the same time. Mainly because I believe I have have a short attention span, sometimes... or life just gets in the way of hobby's and I opened up several of the pots.. Now they all have some layer of film over them. Some thicker than others. The thin layer seems to dissolve back into the paint easy enough, but the thicker ones seem to stay chunky.. I really think I now need to stay focused one thing till its done or risk loosing a ton of paint..

As for appliction, I do the same as you. I put what I am going to use in a pallet and paint form there. I tend to add a couple of drops of Thinner to the mix int he begging and periodically while I paint. That way the paint stays the thin while I paint and does not thicken as it dries over time. As for Humbrol quality, I love it and agree it holds up really good. No complaints in the quality and color choices.

[redleg]

Spectacular work Pete!

[pmskaar]

Thank you very much, Redleg! I appreciate it.

My current project is finishing the remaining M-13/40s of my Italian Tank company. I had 5 done a couple of years ago but the other 12 have been awaiting their turn for the last 2 years or so.

Here are a few pictures of my completed platoon which I posted here a while back.

[Hoth_902]

Hey Pete,

I started painting up the detail stuff on my PZIV F2s.. Was wondering if you had a good picture of both sides of one of your pieces. I am trying to figure out what some of the details molded on the tank.. Some are obvious.. others are less so.

[pmskaar]

Hi Hoth

Are these the newer Panzer IVF2s by GHQ? I have both the newer one from a few years ago and the older version that came out in the late 1970s -80s.

I think the ones you have are the newer models. I have some on nails that I was going to finish painting at some point. I will check them out to see the various "BII" (Basic Issue Items) that are on the vehicle.

I will take some pictures very soon and let you know. You can also check the images of the real vehicles or even images of larger scale models if that is helpful.

[chrisswim]

Pete,
I love the Pz III with Aerial recognition flags. Look super!

[Hoth_902]

Pete,

This is the newest F2. Mostly its the tools on the front right fender. Though there is some, what looks like rods that are along the running board over the tracks on the right side.. The pictures on line are not exactly easy to figure in relation to the sculpt. I can make out the Ax and the engine crank bar and the Jack.. but here is something between the ax and the bent crank bar that I am not sure if its metal or wood. Then I can make out the tools along the right side.. On the left side I picked up on the breach cleaner on the left backside and rods in the middle on the left... Can't wait to see your work.

[foxbat]

Very nice paintjobs, and excellent photographs. I like all of them, but I find these 222s are even more awesome. The washed out sand camo is top!

[redleg]

Beautiful Italian tanks Pete!